New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday asked the government whether China has occupied Indian territory.
“We are standing united against Chinese aggression. Has China occupied Indian territory?” Gandhi tweeted along with a photograph of the Pangong Tso lake clicked by his father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Rahul Gandhi has been attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his statement at an all-party meeting last week that neither is anyone inside India’s territory nor has anyone captured its posts while referring to the Ladakh face-off.
Earlier too, the Congress leader had asked the government whether China has occupied any Indian territory.
The Prime Minister’s Office has already clarified Modi’s comments, and said attempts are being made to give a “mischievous interpretation”.
Firing a fresh salvo at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gandhi on Monday asked as to why China is “praising Mr Modi during this conflict”.
Washington: President Donald Trump is tweeting that an initial trade agreement with China is still on after a top White House adviser’s comments seemed to suggest it was over, spooking markets late Monday.
Trump tweeted: The China Trade Deal is fully intact. Hopefully they will continue to live up to the terms of the Agreement!”
The Trump administration has been extremely critical of China’s efforts to contain the novel coronavirus early on and the president repeatedly blames China for the pandemic in his remarks, leading to questions about future cooperation in areas such as trade.
Peter Navarro, director of trade and manufacturing policy at the White House, told Fox News it’s over,” when asked a question that was focused on the China trade deal.
(Trump) obviously really wanted to hang onto this trade deal as much as possible. And he wanted them to make good on the promises, because there had been progress made on that trade deal, but given everything that’s happened and all the things you just listed, is that over?” Navarro was asked.
It’s over, yes,” Navarro replied.
But when contacted by The Associated Press, Navarro said his comments had been taken out of context and had nothing to do with the deal.
I was simply speaking to the lack of trust we now have of the Chinese Communist Party after they lied about the origins of the China virus and foisted a pandemic upon the world,” said Navarro, a longtime critic of the Asian country.
In January, the U.S. and China reached an interim trade deal to reduce tariff tensions. China agreed to buy massive amounts of U.S. products.
United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer testified on Capitol Hill last week that he is confident China will live up to its purchase commitments even though its economy has been weakened by the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdowns and travel restrictions imposed to contain it.
A key body of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Monday backed the Kashmiri people’s demand for self-determination and rejected the Indian government’s decision to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
A key body of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Monday backed the Kashmiri people’s demand for self-determination and rejected the Indian government’s decision to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
A virtual meeting of the OIC’s contact group on Kashmir, held on Pakistan’s call, adopted a communique that also expressed concern over ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and called on India to “rescind its unilateral and illegal actions, and allow the Kashmiri people to freely exercise their right to self-determination through a UN-supervised plebiscite”.
A statement issued by Pakistan’s Foreign Office said the communiqué was unanimously adopted by the contact group.
A virtual meeting of the OIC’s contact group on Kashmir, held on Pakistan’s call, adopted a communique that also expressed concern over ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC). (File photo for representation)
A separate statement issued by the OIC said the contact group reaffirmed continued support for the Kashmiri people and called on the UN secretary-general to make India abide by the UN Security Council resolutions and “engage in dialogue to calm the situation in the region”.
The contact group called on India to halt security operations in Kashmir, respect basic human rights, “refrain from changing the demographic structure” of the region and settle the issue under UN Security Council resolutions, according to the OIC statement.
The statement added the contact group had welcomed efforts by some OIC members to calm the situation between India and Pakistan.
There was no immediate response to the developments from Indian officials. India has traditionally described such actions by the OIC as interference in the country’s internal matters.
Pakistan has been pushing for such a meeting on the Kashmir issue since the Indian government scrapped the special status of Jammu and Kashmir last August and split the erstwhile state into two union territories. However, India’s close friends within the OIC, including several Arab states, had stymied these efforts.
The communique, according to the statement from Pakistan’s foreign ministry, reaffirmed “support for the legitimate struggle of the Kashmiri people for realization of their inalienable right to self-determination and freedom from Indian occupation” and rejected the “newly-notified Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization Order 2020 and Jammu & Kashmir Grant of Domicile Certificate Rules 2020”, claiming they were “aimed at changing the demographic structure” of Kashmir.
The contact group demanded India should halt “human rights violations; stop indiscriminate use of force; lift the unabated military siege and inhuman lockdown; repeal its draconian emergency laws…and release all illegal detainees”.
OIC secretary general Yousaf Al-Othaimeen chaired the virtual meeting that was joined by the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and a senior representative of Niger. Foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi led the Pakistani delegation, which included the “president” of Pakistan-administered-Kashmir and representatives of Hurriyat from PaK.
Qureshi conveyed Pakistan’s concern at the new domicile rules in Kashmir, alleging they were meant to change the demographic structure. He alleged India had intensified ceasefire violations along the LoC.
Jammu: A mentally challenged youth, who had gone missing from his home in Bihar about two years ago, was on Monday reunited with his family members here, police said.
Ranjeet Choudary was found roaming under suspicious circumstances by a police party in Dhansal area of Arnas in Reasi district on Wednesday, a police spokesperson said.
After hectic efforts, police located his home in Behngi village of Bihar and contacted his family through the local police station, he said.
Choudary had left his home without informing anyone about two years ago, the spokesperson said.
The missing person was handed over to his family members after completion of all legal formalities, he said.
Mumbai: The CRPF jawan killed in an encounter with militants in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday hailed from Solapur in Maharashtra and authorities were working to bring his mortal remains to his native place.
An official from Solapur confirmed that CRPF jawan Sunil Kale, a resident of Pangaon village in Barshi tehsil of the district, was killed in the encounter in Pulwama.
He joined the service in 2000 and was posted in Jammu and Kashmir since some time, the official said.
“The process to bring his body to Solapur is being worked out with the authorities concerned,” he added.
Besides the CRPF jawan, two unidentified militants were also killed in the encounter, police said.
Security forces launched a cordon and search operation at Bundzoo in Pulwama district of South Kashmir on Tuesday morning after receiving specific information about the presence of militants in the area, a police official said.
The search operation turned into an encounter after militants fired upon a search party of the forces, who retaliated, the official said.
Srinagar: Exchange of firing took place between militants and security in forests of Lolab area of North Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Tuesday.
According to the reports reaching GNS, a joint team of Police, Army’s 28RR and CRPF launched a cordon-and-search-operation in Lolab forests.
SSP Kupwara ShriRam Ambarkar confirmed to GNS the exchange of fire between the joint team and the militants. However right now there is no exchange of firing as its deep forest. More reinforcements have been rushed to the forest, added SSP.
Srinagar: The death toll due to the deadly Coronavirus has mounted to 87 in Jammu and Kashmir as two more patients have died in Kashmir in last 12 hours, officials said.
The two patients who died due to COVID in last 12 hours include 85-year-old man from Kulgam and 58-year-old woman from Natipora area of Srinagar.
Dr Farooq Jan, Medical Superintendent, SKIMS, said that an elderly man from Kulgam died at SKIMS on Tuesday morning.
He said patient was admitted to the hospital on June 05 and was suffering from heart ailments besides hypertension.
Dr Saleem Tak, Medical Superintendent at CD hospital said that a lady from Natipora Srinagar died at CD hospital few hours after she was shifted from SMHS on Monday evening.
The patient was suffering from bilateral pneumonia, diabetes and hypertension, he said.
With their death, the death toll in J&K has reached to 87 including 77 from Kashmir and 10 from Jammu division—(KNO)
Srinagar, June 23, KNT: Police Tuesday claimed that missing Phd Scholar Basit Hilal has joined militant outfit Hizbul Mujhadeen.
Basit Hilal who had gone along with his friends in Naranag area of Central Kashmir along with his friends last week had gone missing. His family are seeking his whereabouts and had even staged a protest yesterday at Press Enclave Srinagar.
Basit according to his family was working in New Delhi and had recently arrived Kashmir after the outbreak of Coronavirus pandemic. He has done his Phd at Kashmir University.
Inspector General of Police Kashmir Zone Vijay Kumar according to news agency KNT revealed that Hilal has joined militant outfit Hizbul Mujhadeen.
He was talking to Reporters on the sidelines of wreath laying ceremony of CRPF trooper Sunil Kala at Humhama Budgam.
When asked what details he is having about the missing Scholar Hilal Ahmed, IGP said that the latest update is that Hilal has joined Hizbul Mujhadeen. “This is what I have to say this time,” he said. (KNT)
The new rule would apply only to those who are outside the U.S., do not have a valid non-immigrant visa and an official travel document other than a visa to enter the country
U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a proclamation to suspend issuing of H-1B visas, which is popular among Indian IT professionals, along with other foreign work visas for the rest of the year.
Mr. Trump said the step was essential to help millions of Americans who have lost their jobs due to the current economic crisis.
Issuing the proclamation ahead of the November presidential elections, Mr. Trump has ignored the mounting opposition to the order by various business organisations, lawmakers and human rights bodies.
The proclamation that comes into effect on June 24, is expected to impact a large number of Indian IT professionals and several American and Indian companies who were issued H-1B visas by the U.S. government for the fiscal year 2021 beginning October 1.
They would now have to wait at least till the end of the current year before approaching the U.S. diplomatic missions to get stamping. It would also impact a large number of Indian IT professionals who are seeking renewal of their H-1B visas.
In his proclamation, Mr. Trump said that the overall unemployment rate in the United States nearly quadrupled between February and May of 2020 — producing some of the most extreme unemployment rates ever recorded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
While the May rate of 13.3% reflects a marked decline from April, millions of Americans remain out of work.
The entry of additional workers through the H-1B, H-2B, J, and L non-immigrant visa programmes, therefore, presents a significant threat to employment opportunities for Americans affected by the extraordinary economic disruptions caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, Mr. Trump said.
The new rule would apply only to those who are outside the U.S., do not have a valid non-immigrant visa and an official travel document other than a visa to enter the country.
According to the proclamation, it does not have an impact on lawful permanent residents of the United States and foreign nationals who are spouses or child of an American citizen.
Foreign nationals seeking to enter the U.S .to provide temporary labour or services essential to the food supply chain are also exempted from the latest proclamation.
New Delhi: A 38-year-old woman was allegedly raped inside a room of the Rouse Avenue Court here, police said on Monday.
The matter was reported on Monday and the accused has been arrested, they said.
In her statement, the woman has alleged that the accused, who is a court staff, raped her inside a room of the Rouse Avenue Court, a police official said.
Medical examination has been done, he said
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Sanjay Bhatia said a case has been registered at the IP Estate police station and the accused has been arrested.
